Life Sciences Commons^™

Variation In Personality Among Semi-Wild Myanmar Timber Elephants, Sateesh Venkatesh

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines two personality traits: exploration and neophobia, which could influence human-elephant conflicts. Thirty-one semi-wild elephants were tested over two trials using a custom novel puzzle tube containing three tasks and three rewards. Our studies show that elephants do vary significantly between individuals in both exploration and neophobia.

A New Cryptic Species Of Scorpiops Peters, 1861 (Scorpiones: Scorpiopidae) From The Northern Western Ghats, India, Shauri Sulakhe, Shubhankar Deshpande, Nikhil Dandekar, Makarand Ketkar, Anand Padhye, Deshabhushan Bastawade

Euscorpius

A new cryptic species of Scorpiops (Scorpiopidae) is described from northern Western Ghats of India with integrated taxonomic approach. Scorpiops telbaila sp. n. is closely related to S. tenuicauda and differs from all species of Scorpiops in morphological features and raw genetic divergence of 5.4-14.1 %.

Core Commitments For Field Trials Of Gene Drive Organisms, Kanya C. Long, Luke Alphey, George J. Annas, Cinnamon S. Bloss, Karl J. Campbell, Jackson Champer, Chun-Hong Chen, Amit Choudhary, George M. Church, James P. Collins, Kimberly L. Cooper, Jason A. Delborne, Owain R. Edwards, Claudia I. Emerson, Kevin Esvelt, Sam Weiss Evans, Robert M. Friedman, Valentino M. Gantz, Fred Gould, Sarah Hartley, Elizabeth Heitman, Janet Hemingway, Hirotaka Kanuka, Jennifer Kuzma, James V. Lavery, Yoosook Lee, Marce Lorenzen, Jeantine E. Lunshof, John M. Marshall, Philipp W. Messer, Craig Montell, Kenneth A. Oye, Megan J. Palmer, Philippos Aris Papathanos, Prasad N. Paradkar, Antoinette J. Piaggio, Jason L. Rasgon, Gordana Rašić, Larisa Rudenko, J. Royden Saah, Maxwell J. Scott, Jolene T. Sutton, Adam E, Vorsino, Omar S. Akbari

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We must ensure that trials are scientifically, politically, and socially robust, publicly accountable, and widely transparent.

Gene drive organisms (GDOs), whose genomes have been genetically engineered to spread a desired allele through a population, have the potential to transform the way societies address a wide range of daunting public health and environmental challenges. The development, testing, and release of GDOs, however, are complex and often controversial. A key challenge is to clarify the appropriate roles of developers and others actively engaged in work with GDOs in decision-making processes, and, in particular, how to establish partnerships with relevant authorities and other …

The Mayfly Newsletter, Donna Giberson

The Mayfly Newsletter

The Mayfly Newsletter is the official newsletter of the Permanent Committee of the International Conferences on Ephemeroptera.

Residency, Diel Movement, And Tidal Patterns Of Large Juvenile Bull Sharks (Carcharhinus Leucas) In Winyah Bay, Sc, Jeremy Lee Arnt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Hormonal Responses To Seasonal Thermal And Ecological Stressors In Japanese Macaques (Macaca Fuscata), Lilianne Nelson

Masters Theses

Relative to most primate species, Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata) experience extreme seasonal variation in thermal and ecological stressors that can impact energetic demands. To cope with these environmental changes, levels of metabolic hormones, such as cortisol and triiodothyronine, fluctuate to facilitate energetic adjustments. While previous research in primates has investigated thermal and ecological stressors individually, a combined assessment of these stressors alongside hormone levels can provide a more holistic understanding of the relationship between a primate’s thermoregulation, energetic balance, and stress. The goals of this study were to determine the effects of season, temperature and ecological stress on …

Fall Field Report, August-November 2020, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

Two issues were of concern this fall, and both appeared to have consequences or at least similarities in Nebraska. A major die-off in New Mexico made national news: https://www.aba.org/the-data-behind-mysterious-bird-deaths-in-new-mexico/. On Sep 9, 2020, the temperature dropped from 96°F to 40°F in the Albuquerque area, a record low, winds reached 70 mph, and several inches of snow fell, killing large numbers of birds directly. Over the next few days, hundreds more dead birds were picked up. Some have linked this high mortality to birds displaced from the mountains due to fire and unfortunately being caught in the severe weather. While fire …

Index To Volume 88

Nebraska Bird Review

Index to The Nebraska Bird Review, Volume 88 (2020)

From: Aden, Scott 95

to: Zonotrichia leucophrys gambelii 158 leucophrys 70, 158 oriantha 70

History Of The Seward-Branched Oak Lake Christmas Bird Count, 1993-2020, Joseph A. Gubanyi

Nebraska Bird Review

The Seward-Branched Oak Lake Christmas Bird Count (Seward-BOL CBC) began in 1993 and has been conducted every year since then except for 2010 for a total of 27 counts. Weather conditions prevented the count on the selected date in 2010 and a backup date could not be set up. The count was started for several reasons. The area west of Lincoln has a diversity of habitats including all or part of four public lakes (Branched Oak, Pawnee, Twin Lakes, and Meadowlark) as well as a diversity of terrestrial habitats on both public and private land. The circle is close to …

The Nebraska Bird Review, Volume 88 December 2020 Number 4

Nebraska Bird Review

Fall Field Report, August - November 2020, by W. Ross Silcock …13.8

History of the Seward - Branched Oak Christmas Bird Count, 1993-2020, by Joseph Gubanyi …162

Index to Volume 88 … 173

Subscription and Organization Information …187

Effects Of Temporal Variation On Ambient Light In Northwest Arkansas, Ashlyn Anderson

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

An animal’s life success is determined solely by its fitness, which makes choosing a mate one of its most important life decisions. Natural selection plays a big part in an animal’s phenotype, but so does sexual selection. Even though females are usually thought to be the choosier sex, in many species or seasons males are also choosy. Male mate preference is an understudied topic compared to female mate preference and therefore, even less is known about the outcomes of a male’s prior mating experience’s influence on future mating experiences. Therefore, I dove deeper into this topic with the highly studied …

Larval Fish Sampling And Scaphirhynchus Sturgeon Drift Dynamics In The Mississippi And Missouri Rivers, Hae Hyun Kim

MSU Graduate Theses

Humans have been altering the natural ecosystem for centuries. These alterations provide many socioeconomic benefits (e.g., navigation and flood-control). However, these alterations can have negative ecological consequences. Large rivers across the country have been manipulated to facilitate various human activities. Rivers are dynamic systems governed by various abiotic and biotic factors. Ultimately these alterations change the natural biogeochemical cycles and reduce available habitats. These impacts likely affect riverine fishes’ ability to carry out their lifecycle. Riverine organisms, and particularly fish, have adapted to survive in free-flowing systems. Population dynamics (i.e., recruitment, growth and mortality) are the basis of fisheries management. …

Infection And Persistence Of Zika Virus In Female Immune-Competent Gray Short-Tailed Opossums (Monodelphis Domestica), Oscar Quintanilla

Theses and Dissertations

Zika virus (ZIKV) is a class IV RNA virus transmitted by Aedes species of mosquitoes. It produces flu-like symptoms, but recent studies have associated additional, more severe pathologies with ZIKV like microcephaly. Currently, no effective treatment options or vaccines exist. This is partly due to limitations of current animal models. Monodelphis domestica (the gray short-tail opossum) may serve as a proper model for ZIKV research. Here we test the susceptibility of M. domestica to ZIKV infection. Female, immune-competent subjects were injected with live ZIKV and analyzed serologically and histologically for evidence of ZIKV replication. ELISAs performed on sera confirmed that …

Summer Foraging Range And Diurnal Roost Selection Of Tri-Colored Bats, Perimyotis Subflavus., Dustin Bradley Thames

Masters Theses

Tri-colored bat populations are declining in eastern North America where the fungal pathogen Pseudogymnoascus destructans has been introduced. The pathogen causes disease and mortality in cave hibernating bats. Once considered a common species in Tennessee, tri-colored bats are now being considered for protection under the Endangered Species Act. There is a paucity of research examining the basic ecology of tri-colored bats. Research to fill these knowledge gaps is needed to inform conservation plans and to define critical habitat. The first objective of my research was to characterize the summer diurnal roosts of tri-colored bats and to examine roost selection at …

Euscorpius Thracicus Sp. N. (Scorpiones: Euscorpiidae) From Bulgaria, František Kovařík, Graeme Lowe, Markéta Byronová, František Šťáhlavský

Euscorpius

Euscorpius thracicus sp. n. from eastern Bulgaria is described, fully complemented with color photographs of both live and preserved specimens, as well as their habitats. This species is described based on morphology and the cytochrome oxidase I (COI) DNA barcoding marker. In addition to the analyses of external morphology and hemispermatophore, we also describe the karyotype of E. thracicus sp. n. (2n=92).

Linking Mosquito Surveillance To Dengue Fever Through Bayesian Mechanistic Modeling, Clinton B. Leach, Jennifer A. Hoeting, Kim M. Pepin, Alvaro E. Eiras, Mevin B. Hooten, Colleen T. Webb

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Our ability to effectively prevent the transmission of the dengue virus through targeted control of its vector, Aedes aegypti, depends critically on our understanding of the link between mosquito abundance and human disease risk. Mosquito and clinical surveillance data are widely collected, but linking them requires a modeling framework that accounts for the complex non-linear mechanisms involved in transmission. Most critical are the bottleneck in transmission imposed by mosquito lifespan relative to the virus’ extrinsic incubation period, and the dynamics of human immunity. We developed a differential equation model of dengue transmission and embedded it in a Bayesian hierarchical …

Revision Of Genus-Group Taxa In The Family Scorpiopidae Kraepelin, 1905, With Description Of 15 New Species (Arachnida: Scorpiones), František Kovařík, Graeme Lowe, Mark Stockmann, František Šťáhlavský

Euscorpius

The scorpiopids comprise a large scorpion family, distributed widely across the Oriental region, that currently encompasses 82 species placed under 8 genera and one subgenus. A variety of morphological characters have been used in the diagnoses of these genera or subgenera. Some characters were introduced by Vachon (1980) and Soleglad & Sissom (2001) when less than a few dozen species were known, while other more recent characters have not been fully evaluated. We critically review all characters that have been applied to generic or subgeneric taxonomy of the family, as well as several others hitherto neglected. We analyze their variation …

Two New Chaerilus From Thailand And Laos (Scorpiones: Chaerilidae), František Kovařík, Graeme Lowe, Mark Stockmann, František Šťáhlavský

Euscorpius

Chaerilus kautti sp. n. from Thailand and C. pulcherrimus sp. n. from Laos are described and fully illustrated with color photographs of live and preserved specimens. C. kautti sp. n. is characterized by the unique combination of two characters: movable finger of pedipalp with 11 imbricated rows of granules; and pedipalp chela length/width ratio in male 4.55. C. pulcherrimus sp. n. is characterized by the unique combination of four characters: movable finger of pedipalp with 8 imbricated rows of granules; total length 16–19 mm; pedipalp chela length/width ratio in male 2.57, in female 2.69; and sternite VII smooth. In addition …

Effect Of Seasons And Scorpion Size On The Foraging And Diet Of The Striped Bark Scorpion, Centruroides Vittatus (Buthidae: Scorpiones) In Blackbrush Habitat Of South Texas, C. Neal Mcreynolds

Euscorpius

Diet and foraging success of the striped bark scorpion, Centruroides vittatus, in South Texas are influenced by both scorpion size and season of the year. In the ten-year study of the striped bark scorpions in the blackbrush habitat of south Texas, the diet was variable with caterpillars (Lepidoptera) as the main prey for all seasons and all size classes of scorpions. The proportion of caterpillars did vary significantly with size class of scorpion and months of the year with intermediate size scorpions capturing more caterpillars during January–April than other size classes or months of the year. The proportion of …

Connections In The Underworld: A Morphological And Molecular Study Of Diversity And Connectivity Among Anchialine Shrimp., Robert Eugene Ditter

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research investigates the distribution and population structure of crustaceans, endemic to anchialine systems in the tropical western Atlantic focusing on cave-dwelling shrimp from the family Barbouriidae. Taxonomic and molecular tools (genetic and genomic) are utilized to examine population dynamics and the presence of phenotypic hypervariation (PhyV) of the critically endangered species Barbouria cubensis (von Martens, 1872). The presence of PhyV and its geographic distribution is investigated among anchialine populations of B. cubensis from 34 sites on Abaco, Eleuthera, and San Salvador, Bahamas. Examination of 54 informative morphological characters revealed PhyV present in nearly 90% (n=463) of specimens with no …

Multidecadal Analysis Of Beach Loss At The Major Offshore Sea Turtle Nesting Islands In The Northern Arabian Gulf, Rommel H. Maneja, Jeffrey D. Miller, Wenzhao Li, Rejoice Thomas, Hesham El-Askary, Sachi Perera, Ace Vincent B. Flandez, Abdullajid U. Basali, Joselito Francis A. Alcaria, Jinoy Gopalan, Surya Prakash Tiwari, Mubarak Al-Jedani, Perdana K. Prihartato, Ronald A. Loughlan, Ali Qasem, Mohamed A. Qurban, Wail Falath, Daniele Struppa

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Undocumented historical losses of sea turtle nesting beaches worldwide could overestimate the successes of conservation measures and misrepresent the actual status of the sea turtle population. In addition, the suitability of many sea turtle nesting sites continues to decline even without in-depth scientific studies of the extent of losses and impacts to the population. In this study, multidecadal changes in the outlines and area of Jana and Karan islands, major sea turtle nesting sites in the Arabian Gulf, were compared using available Kodak aerographic images, USGS EROS Declassified satellite imagery, and ESRI satellite images. A decrease of 5.1% and 1.7% …

Diferenciación De Nicho Ecológico En Ranas Arborícolas De Las Familias Hylidae Y Phyllomedusidae En La Zona Noroccidental De Suramérica Como Resultado De La Variación De Rasgos Morfológicos, Carolina Rodríguez Puello

Biología

La ocupación diferencial de nichos ecológicos está influenciada por procesos bióticos y abióticos, que incluyen interacciones entre especies, características ambientales y disponibilidad de recursos. Sin embargo, en especies estrechamente relacionadas se ha sugerido que la ocupación diferencial de espacios ambientales está relacionada con variaciones morfológicas y condiciones climáticas particulares de cada hábitat. En este estudio, se determinó si en especies pertenecientes a las familias Hylidae y Phyllomedusidae, la diferenciación de nicho ecológico está asociada a la divergencia de rasgos morfológicos destinados al uso del hábitat. Para ello, usando 97 especímenes depositados en colecciones biológicas, se realizaron análisis morfométricos del cuerpo …

Spotted Owls And Forest Fire: Comment, Gavin M. Jones, R. J. Gutiérrez, William M. Block, Peter C. Carlson, Emily J. Comfort, Samuel A. Cushman, Raymond J. Davis, Stephanie A. Eyes, Alan B. Franklin, Joseph L. Ganey, Shaula Hedwall, John J. Keane, Rodd Kelsey, Damon B, Lesmeister, Malcolm P. North, Susan L. Roberts, Jeremy T. Rockweit, Jamie S. Sanderlin, Sarah C. Sawyer, Ben Solvesky, Douglas J. Tempel, Ho Yi Wan, A. Leroy Westerling, Gary C. White, M. Zachariah Peery

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Western North American forest ecosystems are experiencing rapid changes in disturbance regimes because of climate change and land use legacies (Littell et al. 2018). In many of these forests, the accumulation of surface and ladder fuels from a century of fire suppression, coupled with a warming and drying climate, has led to increases in the number of large fires (Westerling 2016) and the proportion of areas burning at higher severity (Safford and Stevens 2017, Singleton et al. 2018). While the annual area burned by fire is still below historical levels (Taylor et al. 2016), some forest types in the west …

Scorpions Of The Horn Of Africa (Arachnida: Scorpiones). Part Xxv. Description Of Pandinurus Awalei Sp. N. And The Male Of Pandiborellius Somalilandus (Kovařík, 2012), With Remarks On Recent Synonymies (Scorpionidae: Pandininae), František Kovařík, Graeme Lowe, Hassan Sh A. Elmi

Euscorpius

A new species Pandinurus awalei sp. n. is described from Somaliland. The male of Pandiborellius somalilandus (Kovařík, 2012) is also described for the first time and sexual dimorphism of the species is defined. The habitus, morphology and habitats of both species are illustrated in detail with color and UV fluorescence images, including both live and preserved specimens. The species Pandinurus intermedius (Borelli, 1919) and Pandipalpus lowei (Kovařík, 2012) of Pandininae that were synonymized by Prendini & Loria (2020) are reinstated as valid species.

Loci Associated With Antibody Response In Feral Swine (Sus Scrofa) Infected With Brucella Suis, Courtney F. Pierce, Vienna R. Brown, Steven C. Olsen, Paola Boggiatto, Kerri Pedersen, Ryan S. Miller, Scott E. Speidel, Timothy J. Smyser

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Feral swine (Sus scrofa) are a destructive invasive species widespread throughout the United States that disrupt ecosystems, damage crops, and carry pathogens of concern for the health of domestic stock and humans including Brucella suis—the causative organism for swine brucellosis. In domestic swine, brucellosis results in reproductive failure due to abortions and infertility. Contact with infected feral swine poses spillover risks to domestic pigs as well as humans, companion animals, wildlife, and other livestock. Genetic factors influence the outcome of infectious diseases; therefore, genome wide association studies (GWAS) of differential immune responses among feral swine can provide …

A Review Of Avian Influenza A Virus Associations In Synanthropic Birds, Susan A. Shriner, J. Jeffrey Root

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Avian influenza A viruses (IAV) have received significant attention due to the threat they pose to human, livestock, and wildlife health. In this review, we focus on what is known about IAV dynamics in less common avian species that may play a role in trafficking IAVs to poultry operations. Specifically, we focus on synanthropic bird species. Synanthropic species, otherwise known as peridomestic, are species that are ecologically associated with humans and anthropogenically modified landscapes, such as agricultural and urban areas. Aquatic birds such as waterfowl and shorebirds are the species most commonly associated with avian IAVs, and are generally considered …

Reddyanus Justi Sp. N. From Laos (Scorpiones: Buthidae), František Kovařík, Graeme Lowe, František Šťáhlavský

Euscorpius

A new species Reddyanus justi sp. n. from Laos is described, fully complemented with color photographs of live and preserved specimens. The new species is characterized by the irregular quadrilateral shape of the subaculear tubercle in males. In addition to analysis of external morphology and hemispermatophore, we also describe the karyotype (2n=12)

An Annotated Atlas Of The Freshwater Fishes Of North Carolina, Bryn H. Tracy, Fred C. Rohde, Gabriela M. Hogue

Southeastern Fishes Council Proceedings

North Carolina’s first state-specific checklist of freshwater fish species was published in 1709 by John Lawson. Subsequent species lists with descriptions included: Brickell (1737), Cope (1870a), Jordan (1889a), Jordan and Evermann (1896-1900), Smith (1907), Jordan et al. (1930), Fowler (1945), Louder (1962), Ratledge et al. (1966), Menhinick et al. (1974). In 1991, Menhinick published “The Freshwater Fishes of North Carolina”, which is still widely in use because a comprehensive update has not been produced since its publication. The increase in the availability of historical records in globally accessible databases and the surge of collections post-1991 …

Two New Species Of Chiromachetes (Scorpiones: Hormuridae) From The Northern Western Ghats, India, Shauri Sulakhe, Shubhankar Deshpande, Nikhil Dandekar, Makarand Ketkar, Gaurang Gowande, Anand Padhye, Deshabhushan Bastawade

Euscorpius

Two new species of Chiromachetes Pocock, 1899 (Hormuridae) are described from the northern Western Ghats of India using an integrated taxonomic approach. Chiromachetes parakrami sp. n. and C. ramdasswamii sp. n. are closely related and differ from each other and C. sahyadriensis by morphological features and raw genetic divergence of 7.9–9.4 %.

Genomic Adaptations To Salinity Resist Gene Flow In The Evolution Of Floridian Watersnakes, Rhett M. Rautsaw, Tristan D. Schramer, Rachel Acuña, Lindsay N. Arick, Mark Dimeo, Kathryn P. Mercier, Michael Schrum, Andrew J. Mason, Mark J. Margres, Jason L. Strickland, Christopher L. Parkinson

Publications and Research

The migration-selection balance often governs the evolution of lineages, and speciation with gene flow is now considered common across the tree of life. Ecological speciation is a process that can facilitate divergence despite gene flow due to strong selective pressures caused by ecological differences; however, the exact traits under selection are often unknown. The transition from freshwater to saltwater habitats provides strong selection targeting traits with osmoregulatory function. Several lineages of North American watersnakes (Nerodia spp.) are known to occur in saltwater habitat and represent a useful system for studying speciation by providing an opportunity to investigate gene flow …